This is a good report, if nothing to write home about. A three
thousand drop for this week could start cutting into the
unemployment rate.

U.S. index futures point to a slightly higher opening.

Background: Analysts were looking for 420K, a
slight improvement from
last week's 421K. This would mean hiring is stuck at a dismal
pace, but it is improving. Claims have been dropping slowly for
two months. We're still looking for a raft of good data to
counter last
month's terrible jobs report.